Concrete brick and method of building therewith



April 1929. c. MIRABELLA ET AL ,7 3

CONCRETE BRICK AND METHOD OF BUILDING THEREWITH Filed May 5, 1927Patented Apr. 30, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

COLOMBO MIRABELLA, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, AND SEBASTIANO TORNADO]!- ANDLEONE PANTANI, OF GENOA, ITALY.

CONCRETE BRICK AND METHOD OF BUILDING THEREWITH.

Application filed May 3, 1927. Serial No. 188,578.

This invention relates to in'iprovements in cement or the like buildingblocks of the type provided on their upper and lower surfaces or edgeswith interengaging means such as ribs and channels corrugations or thelike, the blocks being provided with apertures which when a wall isbuilt up form vertical channels which can be filled with liquid cementor the like which after solidification strengthens and binds the entirestructure.

Our improved block which is provided with interengaging corrugations orundulations is characterized by the provision of flat surfaces disposedand arranged particularly with respect to the undulations. Further whenthe blocks are erected to form a wall the hollows or recesses of theblocks instead of forming vertical channels for the liquid cement to bepoured into, form a network of channels arranged so that the liquidcement poured in, interlocks the structure not only in the verticaldirection but also in the horizontal direction.

An embodiment of the present invention is shown in the accompanyingdrawing in which Fig. 1 is a view of two bricks of the kind proposed inperspective, somewhat apart from one another, but orientated as theywould be in the construction. Fig. 33 a perspective view showing afragment of a wall with the blocks arranged in staggered relation.

Referring to the drawing, the upper block or brick presents fourvertical plane walls. 1 to 4: (of which, only the walls 1 and 4 arevisible) and two horizontal surfaces bearing both like undulations, butperpendicular to one another, the undulations of the upper face runningin the sense of the arrow 5 and those of the other face in the sense ofthe arrow 6, i. e. normal to the former.

The undulations 7, in the preferred embodiment, are sinusoidal, and areinterrupted at the ends and the central portion by plane tracts. In theembodiment, as shown in the drawing, the central plane tract 8 is twiceas broad as the tracts at the corresponding parallel corners of theblock, for the purpose as stated hereinafter.

Each block is formed with a central rectangular prismatic hole 9,disposed with the faces parallel to the outer vertical faces of theblock. All the bricks are alike, as

they can be different from one another only by the length of the longerside, which however should be an entire multiplevof the length of theshorter side, the length of the sides to be considered being measured,in the drawing, in the direction of the arrows L and M.

The above described type of bricks or blocks will be used for buildingin the follow ing manner.

On a suitable layer of plastic mortar or concrete, at first layer ofbricks will be arranged with the undulated faces horizontal. (irenerallythe layer will be for walls one brick thick and each brick will bearranged with the uni'lulations either in line or parallel to those ofthe adjacent bricks, i. e. the grooves or channels of one brick shouldbe disposed in continuation of the channels or grooves of the adjacentbricks, or parallel to them, for each plane wall.

()u this first layer of bricks other layers of bricks will be arrangedwith break joints and without mortar.

Owing to the special construction of the bricks, the outer planesurfaces of two contiguous bricks will meet on or under the centraldouble plane surfaces of the upper or lower brick, the bossin orprojections on the bricks of one layer fitting perfectly into thechannels of grooves of the bricks of the other layer, and vice-versa.

By this arrangement of the bricks, the inner spaces of each brick of theupper layer will communicate with the corresponding spaces of the lowerbrick layers, but, as the bricks are disposed so as to break joint, thespaces of the upper la er bricks will be in line only with the anterlying odd number layers and with the side parts of the spaces formedin two adjacent bricks in the even number layers, counting from above.

Having thus arranged a certain number of brick layers, from the upperlayer an almost liquid cement mortar is filled into theintereommunicating spaces, to the undermost. This mortar, by hardening,binds the bricks together in such a manner, as to lend the wall analmost monolithic resistance.

From the foregoing it will be seen that in the construction according tothe present invention, no iron mountings are needed.

lValls constructed according to this system are healthy from all pointsof view, good insulators against heat and dampness and suflicient-lysound proof for ordinary requirements.

Further they are easily plastered, as the rough walls present an evenface and do not stain the plaster spread thereon.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our saidinvention and in what manner the same is to be performed. we declare.that what we claim is:

1. A hollow concrete building block, having plane vertical surfaces andundulatcd horizontal surfaces, the undulations being interruptml by flatsurfaces adaptedto register with like flat surfaces of the adjacentbrick, the said flat surfaces being provided both at the ends of thebricks and in central positions parallel to said ends the central fiatsurfaces being twice broad as those at the ends, substantially asdescribed.

2. A hollow building block as in claim 1, in which the hollow of eachblock is disposed so that when the blocks are in situ the hollow is incorrespondence with two portions of the hollow of two dill'erent blocksboth of the upper and of the lower course, the centre of the hollowcorespondinn to the line of separation of the two underlying blocks oralso of the two blocks of the upper course whereby cement or mortarpoured into the hollows, forms akind of: not which not only lills thevoids vertically, thus forn'iing as a prisni oil cement, but also fillsthe spaces just above the solid adjacent portions of each two adjoiningblocks, thus interlocking the construction not only in transversaldirection but also in vertical direction.

In testimony whereof we aliix our signatures.

COLOMBO MIRABELLA.

